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School of Education
UW -Madison > School of Ed > About --> At-a-Glance

The School of Education At-a-Glance

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Contents:

Organization

Dean: Julie Underwood, since 2005

Structure: Eight departments

  • Department of Art (includes Art Education)
  • Department of Counseling Psychology
  • Department of Curriculum & Instruction
  • Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis (includes the Continuing & Vocational Education Program)
  • Department of Educational Policy Studies
  • Department of Educational Psychology
  • Department of Kinesiology (includes the Dance Program and the Occupational Therapy Program)
  • Department of Rehabilitation Psychology & Special Education

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VITAL STATISTICS

Fall Enrollment in 2003
Undergraduate 2,317
Graduate 1,021
Special Students 23
Total 3,361

Staff in Fall 2003
Faculty 133
Instructional Academic Staff 48
Other Academic Staff 198
Classified Staff 117
Graduate Assistants 144
Total 640

Number of Majors
47

Degrees Granted 2002-2003
Bachelor's 600
Master's 204
Ph.D. 75
Total 879

Number of Alumni
40,448

In terms of enrollment, the School of Education is the third-largest school or college on campus (after Letters & Science and Engineering).

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NATIONAL RANKINGS

The UW-Madison School of Education is consistently ranked one of the top schools of education in the nation. U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of graduate programs (Best Graduate School Choices for 2005) rated the School sixth in the nation and gave high marks to individual departments and programs.

Curriculum & instruction - #1
Educational psychology - #1
Printmaking - #1 (based on previous ranking; art programs not ranked in 2004)
Educational administration - #2
Elementary education - #2
Rehabilitation counseling - #2
Secondary education - #2
Educational policy - #3
Counseling/personnel services - #6
Vocational/technical education - #7
Special education - #11

The individual rankings were based on a reputational survey completed by other education-school deans.

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NEW INITIATIVES

Master of Science for Professional Educators: More than 40,000 Wisconsin teachers lack master’s degrees. With the School’s new distance-education master’s program, these teachers now have an opportunity to complete an advanced degree at UW-Madison, no matter where they live in the state. The two-year program combines course work delivered over the Internet during the school year with on-campus summer sessions.

Certificate of Completion in Mentoring New Teachers: This program prepares experienced teachers to mentor new teachers, with the goal of addressing the teacher-retention problem by providing novices the support they need during those critical first years in the classroom.

Certificate of Completion in Psycho-Social Factors in Student Achievement: K-12 educators participating in this program will examine non-academic factors that affect student achievement, and will explore approaches to closing the achievement gap.

Wisconsin Partnership for Learning: In addition to assisting administrators with license renewal, this program joins School faculty and K-12 leaders in a collective effort to strengthen teaching and learning in schools statewide.

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QUICK FACTS

A diverse school: With programs that range from elementary education to movement science, the School is a diverse place. In fact, about half of the undergraduates enrolled in the School of Education are in non-teacher certification programs, such as art, dance, and exercise science.

Teacher preparation: The School continually revises its programs to provide future teachers with experiences that will help them to succeed in contemporary classrooms. A recent innovation is a community-based practicum in elementary education, which gives student teachers experience working with students and their parents in a community setting.

The arts: Nearly 500 of the School's 2,317 undergraduates major in art, and the department also serves many students campuswide who select electives from more than 100 art classes offered each semester. In fall of 2004, the department opened a newly remodeled 11,000 square-foot facility, complete with state-of-the-art equipment, to house its metal sculpture foundry and studio glass program.

Kinesiology (formerly physical education): In addition to preparing students for a variety of careers in health and movement, the Department of Kinesiology serves the campus community by offering more than 50 elective physical education courses every semester.

Endowed chair in reading education: Through a private gift, the UW-Madison School of Education has established one of the few endowed professorships in the area of reading education.

Research: Studies funded through the School’s three research centers (WCER, CEW, and WISCAPE) address pressing issues for children, schools, and society. Known for state-of-the-art research, the School has seen externally funded research increase dramatically in the last 15 years, from $6.5 million in 1989-90 to $28.9 million in 2003-04.

  • Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER): More than 50 research projects are currently underway at WCER, which is among the world's oldest, largest, and most productive research centers. Two of its most recently funded projects are:

    SCALE (Systemwide Change for All Learners and Educators) - created to partner university researchers, mathematicians and scientists with K-12 educators with the aim of improving the teaching of math and science nationwide. SCALE received one of the largest federal grants ever given to UW-Madison -- a $35 million National Science Foundation grant.

    A center to coordinate K-3 behavior- and reading-intervention programs - created to identify successful early-intervention models that will help teachers manage challenging problems in the classroom and will help children learn to read.

  • Center on Education and Work (CEW): This center has provided resources, training, and advice to educators in Wisconsin and beyond for more than 30 years. CEW’s Careers Web site offers state residents information on 1,000 occupations and 4,000 postsecondary institutions, and it provides links to 110,000 employers.

  • WISCAPE: The School’s newest center supports research on issues in higher education. In addition, its unique public-forum series engages policymakers from the university, the community, and government agencies in an ongoing dialogue about higher education.

Outreach to professionals: Committed to lifelong learning, the School’s Education Outreach Office offers professional-development workshops and seminars throughout the year. More than 3,000 educators from around the state participate in these programs annually.

Outreach to potential students: Each year more than 14,000 K-12 students take part in pre-college activities on the UW-Madison campus. The majority of these programs are run by School of Education faculty members and staff.

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